Rázboi Tepès steps into the inn’s dim lobby, boots stirring a thin veil of dust. Damp earth and old wood soften the silence.
Rázboi Tepès
I just need a place to keep my head when I rest.
They count out roughly fifty dollars from their wallet and place the payment on the scarred counter.
The Innkeeper accepts the money without comment. Their fingers close around it, then return with a heavy iron key, its teeth darkened by age.
Orsina
A room is a sensible luxury here. Even a short rest can make the road feel less like a grave.
Orsina remains beside the door, their lantern painting long shadows across the peeling wallpaper. Outside, two shutters stay closed, and the nearest lantern remains dark.
Orsina
When you have settled in, will you tell me what you usually build when you are trying to help someone?
+ New Item Acquired
Heavy iron key
“I do as I said I would. I then answer the man. "Eh...basic stuff.. repairs.. utensils, weapons, etc..etc..etc.. it's just a trade I picked up through the years. Not much else to it."”
SUCCESS (Good Reasoning, rolled -1)
Rázboi Tepès follows the Innkeeper up a narrow stair and unlocks a small room beneath the eaves. The key sticks, then turns with a dry snap.
Inside, the room is plain but clean enough: a narrow bed, a washbasin, and a shuttered window overlooking the street. Rázboi sets their toolbag beside the bed.
Rázboi Tepès
Eh... basic stuff. Repairs, utensils, weapons, and so on. It is just a trade I picked up through the years. Not much else to it.
Orsina
That sounds like much more than nothing. People trust the hands that mend what they cannot replace.
The Innkeeper pauses in the doorway, then places a chipped cup and a small pitcher on the washstand. As they withdraw, the old key scrapes Rázboi's palm, leaving a thin red line.
Orsina
Did someone teach you, or did necessity become your instructor?
Orsina steps inside only far enough to rest their lantern on the floor. Beyond the closed shutters, the town's lanterns begin their measured flicker, faintly repeating across the room like a pulse.
Orsina
You can answer when you are ready. For tonight, this room is yours.
✓ Quest Accepted
Keep the room secure from the entity
“"What rules do the entities in this place follow? Would religious symbols keep them out, or is it more of a pagan sort of thing?"”
SUCCESS (Mediocre Occult Lore, rolled +3)
Rázboi Tepès
What rules do the entities here follow? Would religious symbols keep them out, or is it more pagan than that?
Orsina
Neither, exactly. The veiled woman does not fear a cross, a prayer, or an old god. She recognizes what people believe, then wears it against them.
Orsina rises and traces a finger through the dust on the washstand, drawing a broken circle around the iron key.
Orsina
Boundaries matter here. Salt, iron, spoken names, and promises kept at the threshold. They work because we remember them together, not because heaven or the old earth favors one sign.
Orsina
My mother used a saint's medal. It kept the faces away from her bed, but only while she believed she was not alone.
The iron bell-mark at Rázboi's side gives a faint, cold weight against its cord. Through the shutters, the town's measured flicker seeps beneath the frame and washes Orsina's circle in pale intervals.
Orsina
So keep the room named, keep the threshold witnessed, and do not let grief decide what belongs inside. That is the closest thing this town has to a ward.
Orsina
Would you like me to stay while you mark the door, or would you rather have the room to yourself?